Misery Business
by shin0bu
Summary: Oh, it's on. Severe AU. Kaatang. Maiko. Sokka/Yue?/Toph?/Suki?
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer_: Don't own nothing but the plot. (Foams at the mouth) NOTHING!!

_A/N_: Okay, so I was listening to this particular song, by Paramore, off their _Riot! _CD, all while brainstorming for a good Avatar fanfic. It (the plot) just hit me like a ton of bricks, and later, when I tried to do a one shot, it ended up being a _monster _and I just had to break it up into this. I really don't know how long it'll be by the time I finish, (the original was not quite _done, done) _but hey maybe I'll add more to it?

* * *

_**Misery Business**_

_**By: Shuramai**_

_**Summary: Oh, it's on. Severe AU. Kaatang. Maiko. Sokka/Yue?/Toph?/Suki?**_

* * *

It would be nice to say that fate and destiny go hand in hand, and that everything happens for a reason.

Of course, if you relax and lay back and decide to let any of the above just _happen _to you, it's probably be really likely that you'll still be living with your parents at the age of thirty and playing video games in your basement for the rest of your life.

Sometimes, you just have to grab life by the reins and take destiny and fate in the palms of your hand and guide them. Regardless of any victims that appear in your path--take your happiness. Fight to the death for it!

Well, maybe that was overexaggerating a little--after all, it was this line of thinking that got several people in major trouble before and after the Golden Dragon Dance.

And yes, there were pranks. And victims. And there were people tied to ostrich horses and the ostrich horses themselves weren't particularly thrilled about having whiny little girls strapped on their backs.

And let's not forget the _stalking. _

But hey, maybe it was all worth the trouble?

Lets go back to the beginning.

It was a Tuesday.

There had been people running to class, people lounging around (despite the fact that the tardy bell had just rung) and teachers that were hurrying to class _themselves, _because they had decided to grab that last cup of salvation, coffee, before they ventured deep into the depths of teaching hell.

Class proceeded--and girls and boys innocently listened/ignored the lectures and assignments they were handed out by their teachers. Some students that worked in the office with overly large glasses stumbled and tripped as they tried to carry as much fliers as they could, to post out in the hallways and doors and outside the school building.

And that was really when the trouble began.

Afterwards, all the students exited their classrooms, rushing to their next class even though they would much rather get food poisoning from _the Casserole_ than to sit and listen to another boring lecture on...fractions, or whatever the hell these teachers nowadays were making them study. Some of the more observant noticed the news on the acid green fliers plastered around campus--and there you had it.

Fate and destiny had decided to twine their clever little fingers into the minds and souls of the unfortunates who'd just seen the fliers.

Those who read the fliers tended to become hypnotized--mainly girls, and a few of the smarter males. The regular, average teenage boy _mostly_ noticed, but didn't actually pay much attention to the papers, splayed across most of the walls and doors of the high school. Some new video game that had come out--and they were busy discussing that game, and not some lame dance that would start a few weeks away anyway.

Poor saps.

Sometimes, historic things happen when one is not expecting them; the Golden Dragon dance of the year 2009 would be considered a historic event in the eyes of many, ranking high up there with year when the cafeteria lady's Casserole Surprise was first served.

And while the dance would be seen as good _and _bad occurance (depending on who you talked to) _the Casserole _was always considered by everyone to be the worst thing to ever grace the face of the _planet. _

There were not many people who dared to eat the dreaded Friday lunch special, only the very brave, the very stupid, or _desperate _did. There were horrific rumors about what _The Casserole_ itself contained, and there were rumors that the the lunch had put several people in the hospital, that the strange concoction had caused the death of the dinosaurs, and a few more magnificent, though unlikely, lies.

In fact, Aang had used _The Casserole _as an excuse when his teacher had asked for his homework. He used something along the lines of "_The Casserole _at lunch ate my homework" even though he doubted that his English teacher would believe it, and really, it had been his dog Appa who had ate it, but who could believe a cliche that old?

The teacher had gave Aang this look of incredulity, and then gave him an A for the missing assignments, making the boy promise to _never get near that...food, again. _

Sokka was trying not to think of this as he seriously considerated whether or not getting a plate was better than starving.

"Hey Sokka! Come sit down!" Katara, who was finally starting to prove that maybe she _did _have more brains than her brother, despite his higher IQ, managed to drag him away before he ended up with a near lethal dose of food poisoning.

Most of their friends were already sitting and eating their safe, though boring, paper sack lunches at a large, circular table. Some of them had noticed his gallant/desperate attempt to get something to eat, while others had been absorbed into various discussions.

"I can't believe you would even go _near _there," Zuko's unofficial girlfriend, Mai, commented. She was sitting near her almost-boyfriend, Zuko. At the moment, Zuko was listening to Jet and Longshot talking about some martial arts movie that they had seen last weekened, involving hookswords and a plot to brainwash people in an ancient city--one that, coincidentally, Sokka had gone to see as well.

Although, last's month movie about a boy trying to be a swordsmaster's apprentice had been much more fascinating than this new one.

Sokka tried to defend himself, a bit halfheartedly, as his stomach was growing angrily, threating to kill itself by eating his internal organs . "I was curious! Besides, I forgot to bring my lunch--"

He was immediately presented with three different types, in three different bags, by three different people who were now casting each other dirty looks. Toph, Yue, and Suki, who were his best friends--and while Sokka was a _genius _in school, he hadn't ever been blessed with enough common sense to realize that they were attempting to strangle each other using their _eyes_.

He never _dreamed _that they each had a crush on him.

"Thanks..." Sokka carefully picked one, and gave Suki his best smile, as he felt somewhat guilty, thinking that she was going to go hungry now, thanks to his horrific memory. He completely missed the looks that the other two girls, Toph and Yue, had cast at Suki, envious, jealous looks, and that was for the best. He probably would've gotten confused, otherwise.

"So, you guys hear of the dance?" Yue asked, looking right at Sokka, who was (surprise) not paying attention.

"Yeah," Katara murmured. She tried not to stare at Aang, who had glanced her way regardless, and the two locked eyes. Time seemed to have frozen, for a second, even as Aang suddenly moved as he heard someone calling his name.

"Hey, Aang?"

A sudden silence seemed to envelop the table. An almost a collective turn of heads. And Aang's mouth went dry and Katara, for the first time in her young life, felt like she wanted to _kill _something. Someone. Oh, yes. The girl who'd just spoken Aang's name with reverence.

That..._Meng._

Maybe she had been spending too much time with Azula--but the very sound of Meng's voice always seemed to drive her up the wall. Meng sounded whiney, like a younger, spoiled version of Ty Lee.

"I was wondering...." Meng began, who met Katara's glaring eyes and had the _nerve _to smile at her,"if you would go to the dance with me?"

Aang looked unsure of himself, and the group almost seemed to be holding their collective breaths, as they had been following Katara and Aang's obliviousness towards each other for what has seemed like _years, _but really had only been a few short months. The world seemed to stop still, as though it was the calm before a storm...

And before there was any reaction, either positive or negative from Aang-- there was an unholy shriek that pierced the air, and no, it was not Katara or any of their friends who make the noise. It was, in fact, the shriek of destiny--the beginning of chaos, although if one wants to get technical about it, the fliers were the real start of the problem.

They would actually be the start of many problems, mostly environmental concerns, but that is a different story.

"Hmm." Mai did not flinch, or look up from her sandwich, even as several people come running in carrying an unconscious girl in arms. She appeared to be covered in gunk, some kind of glue, and...feathers?

"Hey," Toph squinted, trying to make out the girl's face. "Isn't that Song?"


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer_: Don't own nothing but the plot--but if would own anything, I would own Zuko. Yep.

_A/N_: Okay, so I was listening to this particular song, by Paramore, off their _Riot! _CD, all while brainstorming for a good Avatar fanfic. It (the plot) just hit me like a ton of bricks, and later, when I tried to do a one shot, it ended up being a _monster _and I just had to break it up into this. Is this close to finished? Uh...nah :)

* * *

_**Misery Business**_

_**By: Shuramai**_

_**Summary: Oh, it's on. Severe AU. Kaatang. Maiko. Sokka/Yue?/Toph?/Suki?**_

* * *

A few days after the tragic humiliation of Song, Sokka was starting to wonder why there appeared to be hordes of dateless girls around school, and why they appeared to be hanging around together in packs. He almost swore that Teo, who had the tendency to run around campus with a camcorder in one hand and a microphone in the other, was making a report on this strange phenomena.

Sokka did not envy that boy. The life of a school reporter was not an easy one, especially when one might accidentally anger someone as psychopathic as Zuko's sister and end up in the hospital. Which Teo did once, and Sokka finally got around to asking him exactly why, and please Teo, don't skip over the details, Teo gave him this freaked out look and told him that he was_ not going to die_.

Poor boy nearly began to hyperventilate on the spot, and needless to say, the small bribe that Sokka had offered him did not even make Teo _consider _spilling the beans.

It kind of made Sokka wonder how Zuko was able to survive his sister for so long; if there was a trick to it, Sokka wanted to know, because Katara was giving him these intense _vibes_ the last few days, where she seemed to either be channeling 'Zula's rage, or becoming something on par with a nuclear explosion.

He absently wondered if this had something to do with the fact that Aang had accepted Meng's invitation.

In any case, really _strange _things were beginning to happen around the school. For one thing, The Zuko Fangirls, who had long ago tried to stay away from Zuko in order to be safe from Mai's wrath, were now starting to stalk Zuko again.

And Mai, who most of the student population suspected of being the one that had caused Song's tar and feathering, was acting surprising calm--and nobody knew quite what to make of _that. _

Although Sokka believed that maybe this was all just an act to put the Fangirls at ease--and then attack them mercilessly.

Zuko was not the only one being stalked.

Jet appeared to be having a similar problem. Fortunately, the boy was single, but unfortunately, this only made him slightly more cocky than he normally was. So far, there was only two more weeks until the dance officially started, and he already had promised five girls that he would go out with them.

By the time that the dance _did _come around, he would have _fifteen. _

Sokka did not know of this, however. He was a little too preoccupied with what was happening to _himself in particular._

His best friends were all starting to act a little more crazier than normal--that was including the people whom he thought would not act crazy _at all. _As in, under any circumstances--whether it be a surprise pop quiz or a sudden surge of undead zombies rising out of the ground, intent on taking over the world.

Sokka blinked, looking down at his math textbook and telling himself that he had to stop playing so much _Resident Evil. _

Anyways...

He was trying very hard not to fall asleep. It was the last class of the day, which meant he should've ditched it and snuck out of school. Toph did that often enough without getting caught, and if she could, so could he. He figured. He hadn't tried doing so yet, and when he had mentioned attempting it once to Suki, she immediately began to lecture him.

_Blah, blah, blah, __**bad**__, blah, blah ,blah, __**moron**__, blah..._

Yue had just laughed at him. _It's the last class, silly. It's not like it'll make much of a difference to ditch school an hour early. _

Toph simply had punched him in the arm. _Then do it, and stop telling everybody about it. _

He sadly began to doodle on his desk, only half listening to Mr. Long Feng drone on and on about...fractions or something, and only half caring when he was finally caught "vandalizing" school property.

"It'll erase," Sokka grumbled, as Long Feng's face purpled. "It's an eraseable pen, sir."

"It's a Permanent Marker," Long Feng said, and the next thing he knew, he was made to stay after school and scrub his desk. So another hour of his life was wasted, and he figured that he would start listening to Toph from now on.

When he finally was allowed to go home, though, he almost was boweled over on his way out of school by Longshot, who was running faster than Sokka had ever seen him run. Longshot disappeared somewhere in the halls before he could question him, and Sokka's undeveloped warrior instinct suddenly awakened.

_Get cover!_

He did...running into an empty classroom and hiding in the shadows as he saw several girls pass by, in a quasi-stampeding rage.

And then he felt like an idiot. _Why_ was he _hiding _in the first place anyways? It wasn't like he was taken--and besides, girls? Stamping _hot _girls?

There was _plenty _of Sokka to go around!

The boy happily went back to the hallway, hoping to make conversation with the group of Dateless Girls, completely oblivious of the fact that Toph and Yue had just exited the school moments after.

....

"So...why did you want to talk to me after school, Toph?"

Toph and Yue got along slightly. They did not argue with each other, nor did they make veiled threats or subtle insults in an attempt to get an upper hand on one another. They aknowledged the fact that they were rivals, and they also included Suki in the same category, but weren't mean and underhanded.

At least, not _yet _at any rate.

The same could not be said of Zuko's potential girlfriends, Mai, Song, and Jin, who of all the Zuko Fangirls, were very likely trying to start the next World War Three in a high school campus.

Toph crossed her arms, as she leaned back against a secluded spot in the school's courtyard.

"I want to talk about Sokka." The girl was quite calm, and Yue tensed slightly, but forced herself to relax. Under no circumstances, was she going to freak out and start to drown _Toph, _in the school's Koi pond. No, she was not.

"Okay."

"See...I think that I can really trust you, Yue." Toph looked completely relaxed, and she put her arms behind her head, bored. "I mean, I like to talk to Suki and all...but really. Don't you think that its time we got rid of her?"

Yue blinked. "What?"

"I have a proposition." Toph let herself sit on the grass, ignoring the fact that it was probably ruining her school uniform. "We gang up on Suki, and then we get her out of the picture--that way, it'll only be two of us, and we won't have so much stress trying to ask Sokka out."

Yue looked blank. "What? You mean, you want us to kill Suki--"

"No--I didn't mean it _that _way!" She looked like she was about to start laughing. "I mean, we do something to her to make her not _want _to ask Sokka to the dance. We have to do this, before all the girls realize that Mai is going to start disembowling them for attempting to ask Zuko out. See, once that happens, they are going to start flocking over to the Next Best Thing, which is our friend."

"Sokka," Yue stated, trying to clarify it with herself.

"Sokka," Toph agreed, nodding. "I propose a truce between you an me. We gang up on Suki--and we try to either prank her, or get her another date. After we succeed, the truce is off, and we have a fair go at Sokka."

Yue looked pensive. "Let me get this straight...you basically want to gang up on Suki--make sure she doesn't have a chance with Sokka, and then we have a fifty percent chance of going out with Sokka to the dance, rather than the mere thirty percent chance we each have?"

Toph grinned. "So, you in?"

"You bet." Yue agreed, a pleasant smile on her lips and a sadistic twinkle in her eye. "Where does she usually hang out after school?"

Before Toph could inform Yue of Suki's whereabouts, however, they felt rather than saw a murderous aura that seemed to come out of the very school itself, and the next thing they knew, they noticed Katara standing several feet away from them.

It is quite reasonable to say that Yue and Toph were both relieved and terrified, if such a thing could be felt at the same time by two different people. In one hand, it was not Suki who had overheard them talking, but on the other, it was Sokka's younger sister who had, and it was likely that Katara would now be Suki's accomplice, and she would make sure that _they were going down_.

"Someone is going to die," Katara spoke, before they could stammer out some kind of excuse,"_She_ is going to die. A slow, painful death."

Confusion.

"What?" Toph asked, but could not ask more as Katara suddenly began to spew out more words than an English teacher on crack.

"Her! Meng! Does she actually think that she is going to get away with this? I mean, it took me forever to get that other girl away from Aang! Not to mention those _goddamn _fangirls that flock this school like a plague of locus on a wheat field! And then he says yes. He says _Yes. _What is he, on _drugs_? Oh, I'm going to kill him!"

Yue and Toph breathed silent sighs of relief, but not for long, as Katara turned an eye towards them.

"I need you guys--you have to find a way to make Meng break up with Aang. Or Aang with Meng--I mean, I know that he has a good head on his shoulders, and he should realize what a _floozy _she is, but I can't trust him to do that. You guys have to help me, please!"

"What do you want us to do, Katara?"

Toph tensed as Yue asked the question. As far as Toph was concerned, Yue was not supposed to be trying to help out Katara, not if Toph and Yue had a truce. If Yue helped Katara, then if was likely that the girl would, in turn, try to put in a good word to her brother about her. Something along the lines of _Hey Sokka, that Yue really helped me out. You should go out with her sometime. _

And if Sokka was a dedicated brother, he probably would.

Oh, it was on.

"Yeah, we'll help," Toph said, smiling at her friend with the most sincere look she could pull off."I mean, we got like two weeks to bust them up. What could go wrong?"


	3. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer_: If I owned Avatar...well, maybe the world would be a happier place? I mean, I would still keep continuing it, and...well, I don't own it. (pouts)

* * *

_**Misery Business**_

_**By: Shuramai**_

_**Summary: Oh, it's on. Severe AU. Kaatang. Maiko. Sokka/Yue?/Toph?/Suki?**_

* * *

Everything was going wrong.

Song was the first girl pranked--but she was immediately followed by Koko, who had paint dumped on her in the middle of Art Class by a very furious and vindictive Meng, who had found out that the other girl had tried to ask Aang out.

Then there was Yue, who for some reason or another had found a pile of fish heads in her locker, and consequently fainted, only to be revived by Sokka (much to Suki and Toph's dismay).

Katara was pushed into the school's indoor pool.

Song was tarred and feathered...again.

Jin had gotten into a physical fight with Mai, and was humiliated when Mai yanked out her falsies in the middle of the school's main hallway.

Toph's shoes were stolen when she placed them down for a _second _during gym, in order to change into her gym clothes, forcing her to walk barefoot for the rest of the day.

_Meng _was pushed into the school's indoor pool.

Mai found that someone had snuck into her room, at her _house, _and had stolen all her...legally obtained weapons.

Song found pictures of ostrich horses in her locker, as well as a single feather.

Suki, who had so far been lucky enough not to get pranked, found out her KW club clothes dyed black.

There were also a few other pranks, juvenile ones that probably don't need to be mentioned, but it must be known that tempers were running high, people were getting angry and frustrated, and nobody was sure who was doing what prank to whom, and vise versa. And despite the fact that sometimes, in high school, it seems that time goes by so slowly that a day may as well be a _year, _time did pass. And soon, it was the last few days until the dance.

.....

Six days and counting. God, thought Suki, as she narrowly avoided being pelted with food. As if things weren't getting strange around school.

Here she was, hiding behind a chair in the cafeteria during lunch, because for some strange reason, the Universe had decided that it would throw the harrassed students at their high school an imprompeu food fight. Stuff like this only happened in teen movies and third rate fanfiction. What the hell?

She dodged as Ty Lee hurled a glop of food at her, laughing insanely.

And here, Suki thought angrily, was another problem.

For the past several days, Ty Lee seemed to have it in for her.

Which made no sense whatsoever, since she and Ty Lee usually got along...okay. Sure, she didn't like Ty Lee's friend Azula, but she had no quarrel with that other girl either, and it wasn't like she was hitting on _Zuko _( horrified shudder) for Mai to try to convince Ty Lee to kill her.

Besides, Mai looked a little preoccupied for the past few days--preoccupied, meaning, she was following around that Song girl around campus--and Suki, who had noticed this, was starting to become a little worried about Mai's sanity.

Unfortunately, she could not intervene much--there had been disquieting rumors that Mai was responcible for several students nearly ending up in comas. Supposedly, there were pointy objects involved, but that didn't make much sense if Mai had been robbed of her "ornamental" weapons she was fond of obtaining from some unknown magazines and internet sites.

There was a horrible squelching sound, and Suki felt something hit her in the back of the head, followed by Ty Lee's girlish giggle.

"See if I let you join the KW club now!" Suki shrieked, finally losing her composure. Leaping up, she chased after Ty Lee, nearly tripping in the mess of mashed food that was underneath the once-pristine cafeteria floor.

In another part of her mind, she wondered if she couldn't make her own "ornamental" weapons, and, if so, if it would be a good idea to use them as protection against Ty Lee.

....

There were several high pitched screams that littered the hallways.

At first, Sokka believed that the School Counselor had the nerve to hit on the elder sister of one of the students again, because the last time anybody screamed that loud, Zuko's Uncle had almost gotten the beating of his life when Jin's elder sister, Jun, slapped Iroh across the face and called him a pervert.

Zuko seemed to be thinking along these same lines, because he paled and seemed to shrink in his seat for a second, before storming out of the classroom, much to Mr. Roku's chagrin.

"He'll be getting a detention for that," Mr. Roku muttered, even as it seemed a few of the other students stood up to imitate Zuko. "And to anyone else who follows."

Everyone sat back down, and the entire lesson almost returned back to the English assignment they were all working on. Almost being the key word, because the next thing anyone knew, there was a loud thunk hitting the side of the door, and Zuko burst in, looking uncharacteristically disheveled.

"Control Ty Lee, Azula! I don't know what's gotten into her, but she's fighting with Suki!"

Azula, who had been slumped over her textbook doodling gory, macabre drawings, looked up for a few seconds. She was slightly aware that everyone was watching her. "Hmm. Really?"

"Yes! Damn it Azula--you're the only one who can control her! Not even the security guards can get ahold of her--or Suki!"

The tide of student heads flicked back to Azula, who was rather enjoying the attention, but was still ignoring everyone in favor of adding another flame in the doodle, and some small clouds of smoke. She was calmly detached when she answered again.

"Remind me about this later, dearest brother. Maybe when I decide to ditch the meds."

"Wait. Why is Suki fighting with...?" Sokka, who had been listening with a mixture of horror/awe was still trying to wrap his mind around the concept of Suki, _his _Suki, his best friend since elementary school, fighting with a girl that was the embodiment of sugar rush--only to realize, several seconds too late, that this was _not a good thing. _He ran out into the hallway, overturning his seat in the process.

Yue smirked.

Halfways across the room, Song yelped as someone threw a pencil at the back of her head.

And Mai _grinned. _

....

Let it be known, that even though Mai had no problem letting the Zuko Fangirls that he was off limits--that he was her property--she still had two girls that were too stubborn to accept this fact.

Two girls, one who was just as stubborn as she was, and another who...well, she wasn't all that sure about Jin, but regardless, they were both going down.

Let it also be known, however, that despite Song's innocent aura and demeanor she seemed to possess, she was just as stubborn as Mai herself was.

Song, however, was no match for a girl who could've been a weapons master in a past life. The girl gave it her all, however, as she had attempted to ask Zuko out even _after _getting tarred and suffering a slight concusion after the Feather incident during lunch nearly a week ago.

On the exact same day that Ty Lee and Suki began to make war around the campus, almost getting expelled, or worse--almost banned from attending the dance altogether--Mai finally approached one of her rivals.

She calmly spoke to Song, and convinced her, somehow or another, to meet her near the bleachers at the back football field.

The next day, Song was found in the football field, bound and gagged and sitting on a very rare, but slightly bored, ostrich-horse.

When she was rescued by the local school authorities, the first thing she did was slap Zuko across the face, much to his complete astonishment, as he had not even spoken to her in the past month, let alone the day before.

She _still _has not fully explained why.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Disclaimer:**__ Do not own any characters or series. Thank you!_

* * *

_**Title**__: Misery Business_

_**By:**__ Shuramai_

_**Summary**__: Oh, its on. Severe AU. Modern Day. Tokka?SokkaSuki?SokkaYue?_

* * *

"Suki! Can I talk to you?"

It was after school, _four days and counting, _just several seconds after the end of the last class, and Suki, who had been avoiding most people, jumped in surprise as Toph seemed to pop out of the ground itself.

Suki had to remind herself that Toph was not trying to scare her. That she just had this knack for scaring the living daylights out of everyone she met, usually because one did not expect for someone so short to pack such a punch, and because the other girl had the tendency to suddenly...appear.

There were even rumors that Toph was so tough due to the fact that her dad was the manager to the world famous wrestling Earth Rumble show that came on TV, where Toph was said to have participated in once.

Suki at this moment, however, was not thinking about Toph's record, but mostly, about how she was going to survive Ty Lee and her nerve-wraking surprise attacks. For a split second, Suki had thought that maybe Ty Lee had decided to hire Toph's help through some bribe or another, but she relaxed when she heard the next words come out of Toph's mouth.

"Wow. You're really tense. Can't believe you actually _jumped _that high."

Suki almost took offence at Toph's awe. Almost.

"She's crazy, Toph. And I think I'm starting to lose my grip on reality...but that's just how I'm doing at the moment. How's your day been?" She tried not to be sarcastic. Really.

"Oh great! I mean, despite the fact that I had to help Haru and the Vice Principal rescue Aang's date from the forces of darkness."

Suki gave her a blank, almost-Sokka like look.

"She was locked inside the school's janitor's closet. Sometimes, I really think Yue and Katara go a _little _too far with this _Let's get Meng for stealing Aang away from Katara from right under her nose _thing they got going on."

"Oh."

"But see, Suki, that's not what I want to talk to you about." Toph shuffled her feet slightly, lost in thought. "Well, it's about Yue, you see..."

...

Three days to go.

And already, Zuko felt like he was unraveling.

Oh sure. It was just a school dance--one among many that would happen in his high school career, where he would have to endure his Uncle's attempts to give him advice on how to respect his many dates, however many he would end up having, and being forced into formal, fancy clothing.

And yes, he had gone to a few dances. Once with Song, once with Jin, and two or three times with Mai.

And in the total of those five dances, he had to fend off a _horde _of girls who had decided that they would become creepy photographers/paparazzi and trail after him during _every single one of those semi-dates. _

It angered Zuko mightly--especially, when Uncle got ahold of several of those shots.

In a minor, related note, it also pissed off Teo to no end, as he was the type to leave several cameras in his locker at all times (for breaking school news, if it must be known, he was _not _spying on Smellerbee) and once he had found that all his film, cameras, and hell, even carrying cases had vanished, and come into the possesion of the Zuko fan club.

He owed his dad several hundred _dollars _for that equipment, dammit.

In any case, Zuko felt like he was starting to get close to a mental breakdown. He had gotten so desperate to flee the attention of several girls, _including _his unofficial girlfriend, that he had even arrived at school in disguise once, only to arouse even more suspicion within the high school populace, and causing even _more _girls to fall for him.

Heck, he almost swept _Katara _off her feet, for crying out loud. And he hadn't even been trying!

Well, on the bright side at least, Song didn't look like she was wanting to go out with him anymore.

Zuko frowned slightly, taking notes down as one of his teachers, Mr. Kuzon, began to drone on and on about history and several legends involving the Avatar, or some nonsense.

Zuko snorted. Yeah, right. The Avatar...

....

Somewhere else on campus, Aang sneezed, and wondered if he was coming down with a cold or something.

"Are you okay?" Meng asked, tugging on his arm while waiting outside their classroom for the sub, who was late. "Do you need medicine? Are your ears cold?"

Aang smiled wearily, and shook his head. "Nah, must'a been dust in the air or something." He glanced over at Haru, who was being hugged to death by Ty Lee, and was actually turning blue from the lack of air.

"I have to go to class now, okay? I'll miss you!" Ty Lee hugged/strangled Haru one last time, and left the crowded hallway. She and Suki exchanged glares one last time, confusing Aang (who for the life of him, couldn't figure out why the two suddenly had become mortal enemies).

Even after he sat in class, and tried to ignore Meng's love notes, he decided that he'd ask Ty Lee about the hostility. He'd attempted to ask Suki, but found no answers.

"It's just my luck," Suki had replied angrily, when Mr. Chong wasn't looking. "Everyone else gets tubs of paint and feathers. I almost get _killed."_

"_Killed?_" Aang had almost asked, his mouth open and ready to spit out the word, but unfortunately, Mr. Chong chose that moment turn up the radio in the art class to a much louder volume, thus making the class seem more like a hippy dance club than an actual school room.

Once the bell rang, Aang managed to escape Meng's attention, making his way down the hall as though he were superhuman. He had five minutes to get to Ty Lee's class, including his own, which was halfways across the school from Ty's class.

"Suki...what...going...on?" Aang nearly face planted the ground as soon as he saw Suki's potential murderer, and he gasped for air like a dying fish. Ty Lee, on the other hand, merely stared.

"She's trying to steal my date out from under me." Ty Lee gave Aang a funny look, as though she couldn't understand why Aang was asking such an obvious and stupid question. "Yue told me so."


	5. Chapter 5

_Disclaimer_: I own nothing. Well, maybe the plot, but not anything else.

A/N: AH! I haven't updated in a year, and while this chapter...sucks, the next one is better, I promise. I predict about two more chapters, and then this will be done :) Sorry for the wait!

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_**Misery Business**_

_**By: Shuramai**_

_**Summary: Oh, it's on. Severe AU. Kaatang. Maiko. Sokka/Yue?/Toph?/Suki?**_

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_Two Days, and I still haven't bought a dress, _though Azula, somewhat grumpily as she lay on her bed and twirled the phone cord in her hand, listening to Ty Lee prattling on and on. _Why am I sitting here listening to her anyways?_

"...and I was like, Oh-Em-Gee! I mean, I can't believe she would lie to me, ya know! Well, at least now I know that Haru will just be looking at me, and nobody else and..."

"Ty Lee, this is all really, rather...okay, now listen-" Azula had to talk quickly, because as soon as she had said the word _rather, _Ty Lee sounded like she was trying to interrupt her, and while Azula was undergoing therapy and even had pills to help with her mental illness, she was a few seconds away from just jumping into her car and driving to Ty Lee's and _strangling _the girl for not shutting up.

"But Zula!"

"But, nothing. I called you, and only you, because you usually have pretty decent taste in clothing. And while I do like Mai's taste of clothing _sometimes__, _I don't want to go Goth for this dance." And, Azula thought, Mai was so busy planning Jin and Song's demise that she really had become boring to talk to lately. But oh, well.

A sigh from the telephone. "Well, okay-I'll tell you later in school then. Or maybe during the dance. Do you think that Haru-?"

"I don't care what Haru thinks!" Azula frowned at her toes, as though it was _their _fault, and theirs alone, that she had just ignored the classes she'd attended on Anger Management. She justified it in her mind that Ty Lee had _obviously _been drinking too many Energy Drinks _again, _and not even a saint would be able to put up with Ty Lee's constant stream of words. "I want to know where you went shopping for your dress. What store did you buy it at?"

"But you haven't even seen my dress, Azula..."

Deep breaths, deep breaths, _I'm going to kill _her, breath.

"I _know _that, Ty Lee. I am _desperate." _

Somewhere, something died of shock. Ty Lee was sure of it.

"At Merry's Bin."

"That store went bankrupt, Ty Lee."

Pause. "I know-I bought my dress right when the announcement for the dance came up."

Another pause. "Well, shit."

...

The mall was crowded-it _was _a Saturday, Katara knew, but somehow, it seemed more crowded than usual.

She tried to ignore the cat calls from some of the boys at her school that hadn't gotten dates yet.

Apparently, the average, normal, high school boy had _finally _noticed that the dance was this Monday night, and there were a few males that had yet managed to trick/ask a girl out.

Although, it was rather strange that the boy that had whistled at her looked suspiciously like Jet, but last Katara had heard, Jet was taking Azula to the dance. Or, that was what Mai had said, Friday when she had skipped lunch for reasons yet unknowst to the rest of their friends.

But maybe the fact that Jin had found a pile of rotten eggs in her locker, on top of her textbooks, had something to do with Mai's lunchtime skipping.

Katara was somewhat regretting the fact that she had come to the mall in the first place, now-it was too busy, and there were too many people here, not only from her school, but from others-and she really was thinking that she should strangle Sokka for accidentally misplacing her good dress, causing her to buy a new one at the last minute.

_I'll bet Meng has a __**perfect **__dress. It probably is the kind that makes her look like a princess... I'll end up looking like one of Cinderella's wicked stepsisters. _

Sourly, Katara stormed into a store, narrowly missing colliding into Azula, nearly knocking over a display of shoes that had been neatly stacked near the some sophisticated dress clothes, and stomping on _Zuko's _foot, as he had been trying to blend into the background like a chameleon, because if someone saw him in this obscenely girly store, people were going to start suspecting he swung for the other team or something.

Azula grinned as Zuko gave a howl, attracting the attention of quite a bit of customers, and a few of the bystanders outside.

_If that wasn't an omen of good luck, I don't know what was, _thought Azula, watching Zuko almost dance around in pain for a few amusing seconds. _Well, that was fun. Back to business. _

Happily, Azula began to scour the store again, as though she was wadding through cheap merchandise in a discount store, when in reality this store was one of the more ridiculously expensive stores in the mall. Zuko, on the other hand, was trying to slink away again into the minimal shadows that existed, while trying not to act as though his toe was broken.

"Oh, cut it out, Zuko." Azula held up a potential dress, then tossed it aside, while one of the store workers glared daggers at her for throwing it on the floor so carelessly. "You're acting all emo again."

"Emo?" Zuko did not sound shocked, but he _did _sound offended. He crossed his arms over his chest, and stared at Azula as though she had grown a second head. "I'm not _Emo."_

"Probably not. But, then, why are you acting like you'll die if someone you know sees you in here? You can just leave, you know."

"I can't," Zuko's gritted out, through clenched teeth, because he nearly had come close to yelling at her at that particular moment. "Not until you give me back my credit card."

"It's not yours, Zuko," Azula said, smirking a little as she tossed another dress aside. "Unless you want me to tell everyone about how you used to have a duck phobia, then it's mine. For today."

Zuko stared at Azula in horror and disgust.

"You _are _evil."

...

Suki modeled her dress in front of the mirror, loving the way that the long dress almost seemed to be made just for her. Absolutely, positively perfect.

_Sokka will love it, _she thought gleefully, because, while she knew that he had not asked anyone to the dance yet, she also knew from her realiable source (Aang) that he really hadn't been planning on asking anyone out, as he had become suspicious that Suki, Toph, and Yue had decided to behave like the Mai, Jin, and Song part of their group, and he did _not _want to get all three girls turning on him, if they decided to start blaming him.

And how right he was, thought Suki, a little bit bitterly. She twirled the skirt part of her dress around, satisfied.

Aang had told her about Yue's little stunt-the whole, Ty Lee-turning-against-Suki plan that Yue had come up with, but even she knew that Toph also had a hand in this.

_The day that Toph had to walk barefoot-that was Yue's prank. Because __**I **__sure as heck wasn't even participating in their little stunts. _

_I mean, who else was going to mess with Toph? Everyone's scared of her, because she has so many wrestling friends that could end up helping her. And who wants to find out that The Boulder is waiting for you at your house just because you stole Toph's shoes?_

Suki shook her head, twirling in front of the mirror again. Perfect.

Somewhere, in a slightly remote, isolated little suburb, Yue picked up her own dress to examine, and fainted from despair.

...

There is a day after Thanksgiving known to most people as Black Friday.

It is a day of Shopping-a day of sales, where there are many outrageous sales, so many things with slashed prices _just for that day, _and people are known to wake up as early as three or four in the morning just to prepare for it.

It is a mad rush, a race, and in some cases, even a literal fist fight to get that iPod for half the price its supposed to be, because there are only so many of them available for the public.

And while this dance was nowhere near Thanksgiving, Jun was watching the occasional squabbles that were happening all around the store she worked part-time in, because, dammit, while she didn't want to _be _here, she had to. Financial aid helped, but it just didn't cover the cost of rent that she paid for her apartment away from Ba Sing Se University-after all, she and dorm rooms and sharing didn't get along.

Amusedly, despite the fact that her management was strict and she wasn't really allowed to idly chit chat with coworkers or customers, she was watching two of the customers almost tear each other to shreds over the sake of a pretty red dress that Jun had once thought about buying, but then decided it might look a bit strange on her.

She watched for a few minutes, realizing that now was the time to take her lunch.

"Good luck," she murmured aloud to the fighting Azula and Katara, who were about to be spotted by her boss and likely kicked out, "You'll need it."


End file.
